February 2018 - Sneak Peek

that many “new” items, according to the
index, are for Argentina, Austria, Fiume,
France and Saudi Arabia, with New Zealand’s
more than 150 leading the pack.
At 1,326 pages, this version is six
pages more than last year. The Letter
from the Editor up front tells us what’s
new in this edition:
The catalog has nearly 6,800 value
changes, plus another 10,400 value
changes that were transferred from the
12 volumes of the Scott Standard Postage
Stamp Catalogue.
Canada went through a “soft” year so
prices will reflect that weakness, though
many exceptions are found among rarer
stamps. Demand exceeds supply for a
number of stamps in mint never-hinged
condition; this might be especially reflected
among the Small Queens and
early Newfoundland.
There are some significant changes
among the 100 made for the United
States’ administration of Cuba.
More than 1,400 changes were made
in the Italian States, in addition to another
650 value changes that moved
over from the Standard catalog. Between
changes from the Standard catalog and
changes specifically for this classic edition,
there are more than 175 changes in
Mauritius.
The stamps of Hejaz (Saudi Arabia)
received a thorough review resulting in
nearly 700 value changes.
Many editorial enhancements were
made. These range from recognizing
that Canada 195d, the 1932 1-cent dark
green, was printed on a rotary press, dry
printing on gummed paper to 230 minor
numbers being added to New Zealand.
The editor’s note offers a special
thank you to consultant Sergio Sismondo,
Editor Emeritus James E. Kloetzel
and Bill Jones, a former Scott associate
editor.
Published in 2017 by Amos Media,
Sidney, Ohio. Softcover, 8 ¼ inches by 10
¾ inches, 1,270 pages. Retail price $134.99
per volume, discounted to $99.99 via Amos
Advantage (Linn’s Stamp News subscribers);
Online version, $75. To order, visit
your favorite dealer, call 1-800-488-5349
or visit online at www.amosadvantage.com
Exhibit Series, published by Steven
Zwillinger
The Information Age and Digital
Revolution, which really kicked up
since the start of this century has left
a huge wake, including the ability to
share and promote a lot of information
at a much cheaper cost than before.
The same technology that has put
a huge crush on the modern stamp era
has other benefits, such as a greater
ability to share philately.
That desire to create presentations
from the highest levels of philately—exhibiting—is
now being shared
through a series of books published by
Steven Zwillinger.
Zwillinger—a researcher, exhibitor
and author—is a past board member
of the American Philatelic Society and
currently president of the American
Philatelic Research Library’s Board of
Trustees. Among his published works
is Path to Gold: 175 Proven Stamp Exhibiting
Tips (2016), which offers detailed
lessons on exhibiting.
The books, all softcover, are printed
via CreateSpace. CreateSpace provides
tools and templates that allow someone
to publish a book without having
to maintain inventory. Expenses are
minimal, thereby making this project
feasible, Zwillinger said.
Sharing exhibits is not new. Tara
Murray, former librarian with the
American Philatelic Research Library,
noted that the APRL “has nearly 800
hard-copy (reproduced) exhibits, and
about 120 in digital form. Of these, 61
are currently available online. Many of
our exhibits are undated, so it’s hard to
say for certain, but I think our earliest
date from the 1970s.”
What is different is that Zwillinger,
and not the individual exhibitors, is
overseeing the reproduction of the exhibits
into book form through Exhibitors
Press. He has already produced
books featuring five World Series of
Philately exhibits.
All of the books feature exhibits
that won grand awards, the top honor
given annually at about 30 selected
stamp exhibitions that are known as
the World Series of Philately. One of
the books features an even more select
level of award, a winner of the annual
Champion of Champions, which is a
competition among all of the grand
award winners.
“In the world of stamp exhibiting,
a grand award is a significant accomplishment,”
writes Zwillinger in a note.
“It is the equivalent to a Ph.D. It is a
contribution to (philatelic) literature
and serves as a valued reference work.”
The exhibit books—all 8½ inches
by 11 inches, softcover—are available
for purchase ($35 on average, plus
shipping, through Amazon). They are:
“Hitler Youth – The Generations of
Lost Innocence,” 165 pages, by Edwin
J. Andrews
“St. Helena Postal History, From
Napoleon to the UPU,” 145 pages, by
Arthur H. Groten
“Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck,” 118
pages, by Dr. Edwin Andrews
“Montserrat: Postal History of a
Caribbean Island,” 133 pages, by Peter
P. McCann
“How the Post Facilitated Distribution
of the Printed Word, 1775-1870,”
171 pages, by Roland H. “Ron” Cipolla
(In addition, there is a volume of
five single frame grand award exhibits
from Sandeep Jaiswal. Each addresses
a single Indian Princely State. This volume
was printed in India and released
at a seminar of the Royal Philatelic Society
of London held in Mumbai. This
volume is not available through Amazon.)
FEBRUARY 2018 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 173